Kontra Daya welcomes the decision of the first division of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) today (August 5) on the ineligibility of Ronald Cardema as first nominee of Duterte Youth party-list.

From the very start, Cardema’s 11th-hour petition to the COMELEC makes a mockery of the party-list system. It gives prospective party-list groups, particularly those backed by the rich and powerful, to field dummy nominees who could be subject to last-minute substitution.

Cardema’s legal acrobatics also insult the intelligence of the COMELEC officials because he claims not to be covered by the age requirement for sectoral youth representatives on the premise that he claims to champion not just the youth but also the professionals. Aside from being overaged, however, he does not have a clear track record for being an advocate of such sectors.

Despite this favorable decision by the first division, however, Kontra Daya calls on the people to remain vigilant because Cardema and his supporters could appeal before the COMELEC en banc.

Kontra Daya stresses the importance of public pressure at this time when Cardema and his ilk try to make a mockery of the already bastardized party-list system and to reduce the COMELEC into an extension of Malacañan Palace to which the Duterte Youth blindly throws its support.

Contact person: Danilo Arao, Convenor, Kontra Daya